Jones Day - Services - Consumer Fraud & Warranty Litigation

Recent years have seen an explosion of "consumer" lawsuits, often in state courts, attempting to recover under various state law theories, including consumer fraud/unfair trade practices, breach of warranty, and unjust enrichment. Because these lawsuits usually involve small-value claims, lawyers will not bring them if they cannot aggregate these claims into something worth suing over. As a result, these consumer cases usually involve class action allegations or other "aggregate litigation" tactics.

Jones Day has been at the forefront of these developments. The Firm regularly represents clients in high-profile actions in the consumer fraud/warranty area. Recent examples include:

"No-injury" cases involving tires, light bulbs, and other consumer products, in which consumers' products have functioned without incident, but the consumers claim damages based upon the products' alleged "propensity to fail" (because a small number of other people's products have failed).
Auto-financing cases, in which consumers allege that automobile dealers did not tell purchasers about "secret profits" that the dealership earned when providing dealer-assisted financing.
Late-fee litigation, involving allegations that our clients wrongfully imposed late fees on unpaid bills for cable television services, pager services, or other services.
Class actions brought against manufacturers of dietary supplements containing ephedra, rostenedione, and other ingredients.

These consumer cases call for particular litigation experience. Jones Day comes prepared to pick the right places to fight: developing the winning arguments at the motion-to-dismiss or summary-judgment stage to defeat plaintiffs' efforts to manipulate the law, creating the solid factual and legal record necessary to defeat efforts to certify a class, and bringing substantial muscle to bear on any trial.

Consumer fraud cases often have another, regulatory angle. Federal or state regulatory agencies—including the Food and Drug Administration, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the Federal Communications Commission, and others—may initiate investigations that pose risks of generating consumer lawsuits. Alternatively, regulators may follow the lead of plaintiffs' lawyers by bringing investigations that parallel consumer litigation. Jones Day has long experience in coordinating regulatory, litigation, and public relations strategies to manage any regulatory aspect of consumer fraud litigation.

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Lawyers Staff Overview Experience Professionals News Publications Achievements Main Practice Trial Practice	Recent years have seen an explosion of "consumer" lawsuits, often in state courts, attempting to recover under various state law theories, including consumer fraud/unfair trade practices, breach of warranty, and unjust enrichment. Because these lawsuits usually involve small-value claims, lawyers will not bring them if they cannot aggregate these claims into something worth suing over. As a result, these consumer cases usually involve class action allegations or other "aggregate litigation" tactics. Jones Day has been at the forefront of these developments. The Firm regularly represents clients in high-profile actions in the consumer fraud/warranty area. Recent examples include: "No-injury" cases involving tires, light bulbs, and other consumer products, in which consumers' products have functioned without incident, but the consumers claim damages based upon the products' alleged "propensity to fail" (because a small number of other people's products have failed). Auto-financing cases, in which consumers allege that automobile dealers did not tell purchasers about "secret profits" that the dealership earned when providing dealer-assisted financing. Late-fee litigation, involving allegations that our clients wrongfully imposed late fees on unpaid bills for cable television services, pager services, or other services. Class actions brought against manufacturers of dietary supplements containing ephedra, rostenedione, and other ingredients. These consumer cases call for particular litigation experience. Jones Day comes prepared to pick the right places to fight: developing the winning arguments at the motion-to-dismiss or summary-judgment stage to defeat plaintiffs' efforts to manipulate the law, creating the solid factual and legal record necessary to defeat efforts to certify a class, and bringing substantial muscle to bear on any trial. Consumer fraud cases often have another, regulatory angle. Federal or state regulatory agencies—including the Food and Drug Administration, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the Federal Communications Commission, and others—may initiate investigations that pose risks of generating consumer lawsuits. Alternatively, regulators may follow the lead of plaintiffs' lawyers by bringing investigations that parallel consumer litigation. Jones Day has long experience in coordinating regulatory, litigation, and public relations strategies to manage any regulatory aspect of consumer fraud litigation.